Photo Exhibit Offers Unique View Through the Eyes of Tanzanian School Girls

Last fall, when a group of Tanzanian school girls held a camera for the first time, they couldn’t contain their excitement or their creativity. They captured rich images of their environment and traditional culture in a way that only young exuberant girls can do, with curiosity, intuition and a deep sense of joy. Their photos will be highlighted at an exciting upcoming art show at Thyme and Again’s Exposure Gallery on the second floor of its 1255 Wellington Street West location. TEMBO, the organizers of this exhibit, call the show “E is for Education”, an apt title since the photos were produced in an educational program conducted by TEMBO in Longido village in the fall of 2013.

The opening is on Thursday, September 4 from 5-8 p.m. Wine and cheese provided by Thyme & Again will complement the evening as TEMBO volunteers introduce the exhibit and describe their other exciting initiatives in Tanzania. The exhibit runs until September 17.

Visitors to the exhibit will view ten banners which include original images and text created by 42 girls in attendance at TEMBO’s ten week PASS program last fall where they developed language and study skills in preparation for entry into secondary school. The photos allow a rare opportunity for the public to get glimpses of the culture and its values through the girls’ eyes. In the project, each of the 26 letters of the alphabet is matched to a particular photo and text. The girls even managed to take a photo that matched the letter X: “X is for a game we play called X-Bamboucha. The people jump and sing “mabo mabo x-bamboucha aki bomabo Mx-.”

Visitors to the gallery will also see a school display of the items that TEMBO provides to the girls they sponsor when they attend secondary school. In addition to paying for school tuition, TEMBO supplies uniforms, bedding, school supplies and personal hygiene items. In 2014, TEMBO, with the help of Canadian donors, are sponsoring 67 girls in 10 different secondary schools.

 

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